Graduate Program in Linguistics

Submitted by darmstro on Tue, 11/29/2016 - 2:02pm

The Graduate Program in Linguistics, School of Languages, Linguistics, Literatures, and Cultures at the University of Calgary offers thesis-based MA and PhD programs in linguistics, under the supervision of our prestigious faculty whose research covers the core areas of theoretical linguistics, including syntax, phonology, phonetics and morphology. Our faculty also have a strong research tradition in language processing, historical linguistics, and first and second language acquisition.

a) A presentation relating to the student’s thesis research. Continuation in program is dependent upon this presentation being judged acceptable by the faculty members of the Linguistics Graduate Program.

d) Knowledge of a language other than English demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Graduate Studies Committee.

The following groups will be judged on acceptance to the program to have met the M.A. language requirement:

Students whose mother tongue is not English and who were required to satisfy the English language proficiency requirements for admission to program.

Students whose mother tongue is English and who provide evidence of past schooling in another language (e.g. schooling in an immersion program in French, German or a First Nations language).

Students whose mother tongue is English and who provide evidence of having completed a foreign language secondary school credit such as Spanish Language Arts 30, or French Language Arts 31.

Students whose mother tongue is English and who provide evidence of at least A1 ("Basic User") level of proficiency in another language in the Common European Frame of Reference from a certified testing agency or a recognized academic institution (e.g. university or college) or a recognized language teaching organization.

Students whose mother tongue is English and who cannot provide evidence of prior exposure to another language on admission can meet the M.A. language requirement during their M.A. program in the following ways:

By providing evidence of having received credit for 3 units (0.5 full-course equivalent) for a University of Calgary language course, e.g. Chinese 205, French 209, German 202, Japanese 205 or Russian 201.

By providing evidence of having received credit for one of the following courses: Indigenous Languages 205, Linguistics 551, or 605.

It is the responsibility of the student to provide relevant documentation that the M.A. language requirement has been met. It is strongly recommended that this program requirement be met within the first 16 months of program. It is the responsibility of the supervisor to ensure that the student meets the deadline for completing this requirement.

a) Completion of 18 units (3.0 full-course equivalents), in Linguistics beyond the MA, including Linguistics 611 and Linguistics 613. Course requirements are normally completed during the first two years.Note: No more than 6 units can be taken with the same instructor.

b) Linguistics 600

c) Knowledge of a language other than English demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Graduate Studies Committee.

The following groups will be judged on acceptance to the program to have met the Pd.D. language requirement:

Students whose mother tongue is not English and who were required to satisfy the English language proficiency requirements for admission to program.

Students whose mother tongue is English and who provide evidence of past schooling in another language (e.g. schooling in an immersion program in French, German or a First Nations language).

Students whose mother tongue is English and who provide evidence of having completed a foreign language secondary school credit such as Spanish Language Arts 30, or French Language Arts 31.

Students whose mother tongue is English and who provide evidence of at least A1 ("Basic User") level of proficiency in another language in the Common European Frame of Reference from a certified testing agency or a recognized academic institution (e.g. university or college) or a recognized language teaching organization.

Students whose mother tongue is English and who cannot provide evidence of prior exposure to another language on admission can meet the M.A. language requirement during their PhD. program in the following ways:

By providing evidence of having received credit for one half course equivalent for a University of Calgary language course, e.g. Chinese 205, French 209, German 202, Japanese 205 or Russian 201.

By providing evidence of having received credit for one of the following courses: Indigenous Languages 205, Linguistics 551, or 605.

It is the responsibility of the student to provide relevant documentation that the doctoral language requirement has been met. This program requirement must be met by the time the thesis proposal is submitted. It is the responsibility of the supervisor to ensure that the student meets the deadline for completing this requirement.

Academic reading and working groups

The goals of the Psycholinguistics Lab Group are to gain a deeper understanding of current psycholinguistic research and to inform future work. We are especially interested in research involving adult native speakers and second language learners. The group, which consists of graduate and undergraduate students, postdoctoral fellows, faculty members, and other interested researchers, meets every second Thursday at 1:00 pm in the Laboratory for Interactive Psycholinguistics (Craigie Hall D506).

To find out when during the semester the group will meet, please contact Mary O'Brien (mgobrien@ucalgary.ca).

One of the areas that we are reaching critical mass in is in Syntax, but you cannot be at your best without discussing the contemporary issues with your colleagues. The Syntactic Reading Group is being revived to read and discuss current topics in this sub-discipline stemming from the interests of the group members. Trying to figure out how to apply external research to your own? Want help looking for that fatal flaw in an article you need to cite? Or perhaps you just want to see if some of your interpretations of an article are on the right track – that’s exactly what this group is for.

To be added to the mailing list (so we can pick dates/times/articles), please contact Joseph Windsor (jwwindso@ucalgary.ca).

For information, contact Joey Windsor (jwwindso@ucalgary.ca). A new working group who will look at recent Blackfoot elicitations, discuss questions arising from working with speakers of the language, and to work through the chapters and questions in the Blackfoot Grammar (Frantz 2009) in order to develop a better understanding of this local Aboriginal Language.

For the upcoming academic year, the group will continue to actively organize events and facilitate dialogue with the aim of broadening the interest in translation, especially among undergraduate students. The group’s continued participation in workshops and lectures, such as the upcoming LRC workshop “I’d like to know more about …” in November 2015 will raise awareness about the significance of translation for an understanding of our global cultures and societies.

For more information about the Working Group Translation Studies, please contact Isabell Woelfel (imwoelfe@ucalgary.ca)

The Cercle Benveniste is coming back this Fall for its sixth season. For those new to the University of Calgary academic community and do not know what it’s about, the Cercle Benveniste started in 2013 as an informal linguistics club. It’s now an officially recognized research group that hosts a forum of discussion, open to anyone (colleagues as well as students) interested in linguistics. All are invited to come, brainstorm, debate and exchange ideas about any aspect, subject or topic related to language science.

The Cercle is meant to be, in some ways, a peripatetic school where the participants would, just like Émile Benveniste himself, wander into the nooks and crannies of the discipline, interrogating issues that remain unclear or are overlooked, a priories and impasses… In brief, participants would explore different aspects of language, looking for Problèmes de linguistique générale (Problems in General Linguistics, the title of Benveniste’s most notable collection of texts). To this end, they’ve been invited to bring along questions to answer, books or articles to read, various magazine or newspaper pieces reporting on language, etc. – basically any document, artifact or wonderment that can spark or feed the discussion in a relaxed atmosphere (i.e., people can just come and go – no rsvp needed, sit or stand, chat or listen).